VERO BEACH — A 20-year-old man was arrested last week after a February crash that left his friend hospitalized with a ruptured bowel, authorities said.
Medical records show the driver, Liam Martin Lewis, had cocaine and sedative drugs in his system, according to an arrest report.
Lewis and his friend drank a couple bottles of wine and vodka before the wreck, police said. Both were traveling in a vehicle that crashed into a curb and clipped a tree, causing the car to spin clockwise.
Lewis suffered minor injuries while his friend had serious injuries, police said. Details on if the friend is still hospitalized were not available.
Police charged Lewis, of the 700 block of Painted Building Lane, on Friday with driving under the influence with serious bodily harm. He is being held at the Indian River County Jail on $25,000 bond.
The crash happened about 7 a.m. Feb. 15 near U.S. 1. and Commerce Avenue. Police were told a passenger in the crash was taken to Lawnwood Regional Medical Center & Heart Institute in Fort Pierce with serious injures, an arrest report shows.
Upon arrival, police saw a Honda Civic with extensive damage in the right lane of U.S. 1, facing east. The outer panels were no loner on the car, the windshield had “spiderweb” cracking and was pushed inward and the airbags were deployed, police said.
Officers spoke to a witness who said he pulled the passenger from the car after the wreck, an arrest report states. He said Lewis was already out of the car when he got to the scene.
Police spoke with Lewis, who said he was changing lanes when he lost control of the car and struck the curb, authorities said.
Officers spoke with Lewis’ mother, who said Lewis was at her home the night before and left about 11 p.m. She didn’t know Lewis had not come back home, police said. The mother told police she was concerned he had not been taking his medication.
Police spoke with Lewis’ friend. He told officers that both he and Lewis attend Florida International University in Miami.
Officers received medical records on March 19 that showed Lewis’ blood-alcohol content level was 0.98, which is above the 0.08 legal limit, police said.
Police submitted a complaint affidavit to the State Attorney’s Office and arrested Lewis on a warrant.
